Case Western Reserve University Biomedical Engineering Department to celebrate its 40th anniversary

The Case Western Reserve University Biomedical Engineering Department has set trends for academia and launched medical inventions benefiting newborns and the aged, the critically ill and traumatically injured. The department will reflect and look to the future as it celebrates its 40th anniversary, Thursday, Oct. 22.

Case Western Reserve was among the first universities in the nation to offer graduate and undergraduate biomedical engineering programs as well as the first to offer a joint MD/PhD program.

During the past four decades, researchers here have developed imaging technologies that helped make exploratory surgery obsolete; built implantable electrical stimulators that enable the paralyzed to grab a coffee mug, walk and breathe on their own; and developed tiny sensors that can monitor a premature infant's breathing or an astronaut's health during months in space.

To help celebrate these achievements, William A. Hawkins, chairman and chief executive officer of Medtronic, Inc., the world's largest medical technology company, is the featured speaker for the Allen H. and Constance T. Ford Distinguished Lecture, at the Wolstein Research Building, 2103 Cornell Road, at 4:30 p.m.

Hawkins will trace the biomedical industry back to its roots, discuss early innovations and the evolution of biomedical engineering and then suggest future roles for students and faculty. He'll also highlight Medtronic's strong ties to Case Western Reserve University.

The company funds scholarships for undergraduate and graduate research, employs 87 Case Western Reserve graduates, and has honored more employees hired from this university than from any other in the country, by naming them Bakken fellows for their distinguished contributions to the field. The Medtronic Bakken Society is named for company co-founder Earl Bakken.

Other events include a retrospective by former department chairs Patrick Crago, Donald Gann, Peter Katona, Wen Ko and Gerald Saidel; open houses where students, faculty and guests may see cutting-edge labs and posters and hear explanations of the latest research. The day also features a student research showcase and an opportunity for students, alumni and industry partners to make as many as 10 job contacts in an hour during a speed networking session.

The schedule of events, including times and places, can be found at: http://bme.case.edu/40th/schedule.html.